E-Cigarettes Have Chemicals That Are Especially Dangerous For Teens

NEW YORK (CBSMiami) – New research shows teens who use e-cigarettes could be exposing themselves to toxic chemicals.

More and more teenagers have been trying e-cigarettes.

Now a new study in the journal Pediatrics shows teens who use them are exposed to significant levels of chemicals that could potentially cause cancer, also found in traditional cigarettes.

“Acrolein is so toxic that it is used in chemical weapons,” said Dr. John Spangler with the Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. “Acrylonitrile is another chemical that’s found in the study. If you breathe it in it will irritate your lungs. It also is possibly related to brain cancer and breast cancer.”

Teens who used e-cigarettes had three times the amount of toxic chemicals compared to teens who didn’t use them.

Among teens who used both traditional and e-cigarettes, those toxic chemical levels were up to three times higher than in only e-cigarette users.

E-cigarettes are so popular that they’re now the most commonly used form of tobacco among teens in the United States.

Dr. Spangler cautions the long term effects of vaping are not known.

“Electronic cigarettes generate nicotine in the vapor,” he explained. “And nicotine is a toxin to the growing, developing brain. These are not benign chemicals.”

The most recent data shows more than two million middle school and high school students were current users of e-cigarettes in 2016.

The Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association responded to the study citing a government report from January.

That report said there’s no available evidence e-cigarette use is associated with cancer.

I don’t understand how it is that anyone figures that smoking anything is not damaging to their lungs. I’ve had that conversation with someone. I smoked over 40 years ago. Smoked as much as 3 packs a day at one point. Quit probably a good 50x over a 5 year period without success. Finally with a lot of determination and preparation I quit cold turkey and never had another cigarette again.

When something is damaging your health there are no half measure solutions. There were no e-cigarettes when I was quitting, but, I’m certain, I would not have chosen to do that anyway. How much sense does it make to continue to draw smoke into your lungs and expose your lungs to smoke on a daily basis and think that doesn’t damage your lungs?! To me, you don’t even have to think about it. You don’t have to spend one minute on research or ask your doctor. Anyone with a lick of common sense, should actually grasp that.

We are all responsible for the choices we make. We make the wrong ones sometimes and start smoking in the first place is one of them. But you get a chance to correct it, don’t try to kid yourself by substituting it with something that’s no better.